Tag: climate

Polar bears could become extinct faster than predicted. That is because there is a shortage of food in their habitat and scientists have now found out that polar bears need more energy than previously thought.

As a result of global warming, Arctic ice is melting quickly, so that polar bears have to travel further in search of food. In a study that has spanned the last three years, scientists found out that polar bears have to travel one and a half times more than in the past. As a result, they lose weight.

Experiments conducted with modern technology show how polar bears move and behave. High-tech GPScollars were put on 9 female polar bears. Their movements and energy consumption have been tracked over a period of 12 days. Results show that a few of them lost up to 10%of their weight.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, polar bears spend half of their time hunting for something to eat. They rely mostly on young seals as the main source of food, but the seal population is getting scarce because of the melting ice.

A polar bear needs about 12000 kilocalories a day to stay healthy and even more to put on the body fat it needs to survive the winter months.

Over the past ten years, the number of polar bears has declined by 40%. Ice on their habitat, Arctic Sea ice is decreasing at a rate of 14% per decade. It is currently at its lowest level in 40 years.

Polar bear feeding on a dead seal – Image: AWeith

Words

according to = as reported by …

behave = act in certain situations

body fat = here: the fat an animal needs to protect itself from the cold weather

collar = band of leather or plastic that is around an animal’s neck

conduct = carry out

currently = at the moment

decade = ten years

decline = to go down

decrease = become lower

energy consumption = the amount of energy you need and use up

extinct = to die out and not exist anymore

global warming = increase in the atmosphere’s temperature caused by more carbon dioxide and other gases

further = a longer distance

GPS = system that shows where your position is on earth through a system of radio signals

habitat = natural home of a plant or animal

lose weight = become thinner

melt = when ice turns into water

predict = to say that something will happen before it does

previously = at an earlier time

rely = here: eat

scarce = not very much left

scientist = person who is trained in science and works in a lab

seal = large sea animal that eats fish and lives near coasts

shortage = not enough

source = where something comes from

span = period of time between two events

study = piece of work that is done to find out more about a subect

survive = stay alive

track = monitor, watch closely

World Wildlife Fund = organisation that wants to protect the environment and save animals and plants

A recentstudy shows that the world’s coral reefs have been showing signs of strong bleaching due toglobal warming. In the 1980s bleaching was rare, occurring about once every 25 years. Now the rate has risen to about once every five years. Environmentalistspredict that by 2050 bleaching will happen every year or two.

Bleaching is caused when warm water breaks down the algae inside the reefs. They provide food for the corals and keep them healthy. When algae fall off, corals lose their colour and can die within a short period of time. Even if the water surrounding the reefs gets colder again it may take years for the damaged reefs to recover completely.

While bleaching is especially a problem in the waters of the Carribean Sea and Western Atlantic, reefs around Australia and South Africa have hardly been hit. In addition to the warming temperatures of the oceans, coral reefs are also endangered by pollution and overfishing.

Coral reefs are an important ecosystem. They are home to 25% of all marine species and provide a habitat for countless types of fish. Reefs protect coastal regions from flooding and tidal waves. In addition, coral reefs are tourist attractions that lure millions of people every year. The tourist industry around the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, for example, is worth about 5 billion dollars a year.

Healthy coral on the left and bleached coral on the right

Words

billion = a thousand million

bleaching = to make something pale or white; when an object loses its colour

break down = to change its structure

Carribean Sea = sea between North and South America

cause = the reason for something; why something happens

countless = too many to be counted

due to = because of

ecosystem = all the animals and plants in a certain area and the way they live together

endangered = to be in danger

environmentalist = a person who cares about the world around us

especially = above all

global warming = when the temperatures in the atmosphere get higher because of increased amounts of carbon dioxide

habitat = place to live

in addition = also

lure = attract; here: bring people to the area

marine species = animals and plants that live in the oceans

occur = happen

overfishing = when you take too many fish from the sea so that the overall number of fish becomes too low

pollution = when water becomes dirty so that it cannot be used anymore

predict = to say that something will happen in the future

protect = keep safe

provide = give

rare = not very often

recent = a short time ago

recover = to become as healthy as they were before

sign = to show that something is happening

study = a piece of work that is done to find out more about a certain topic

surrounding = around

tidal wave = very large ocean wave that flows over land and destroys things

NASAscientists have created a new software program that can show how cities in coastal regions are endangered by flooding and sea level rise caused by global warming. The simulation shows how 300 coastal cities will be affected in the next century.

The software was developed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It calculates which ice sheets and glaciers are melting and how the additional water influences coastal regions. It takes into consideration the rotation of the Earth as well as the influence of gravity. The results are surprising. Sea levels will actually decrease around cities closer to ice masses, while the biggest rises will occur through ice caps that are farther away.

New York, for example, will be most affected by melting ice caps in northeastern Greenland. Sydney, on the other hand, will actually be influenced by parts of Antarctica that are far away from Australia’s city.

The software aims at helping city planners prepare for sea level changes within the next few decades and how to keep ocean water out.

A climate report published this week shows that, since 1900, global sea levels have risen by about 20 cm, with half of the rise occurring in the last 25 years. Projections show that by 2100 ocean levels will rise by an average of 1 metre, however, the rise will not affect all coastal areas in the same way.

Ice Sheet in Greenland – Image: Christine Zenino

Words

actually = in fact

additional = extra

affect = change

aim = here: what it wants to do and who it wants to help

average = here: evenly spread out across all oceans

calculate = here: find out how much something will change by using numbers

century = a hundred years

coastal = where land meets the sea

decade = ten years

decrease = go down

develop = create , make

endangered = to be in danger

flooding = when land becomes covered with water

glacier = very large mass of ice which moves down a valley

global = worldwide

global warming = the increase in the world’s temperatures by higher amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere

gravity = force or power that causes something to fall to the ground and stay there

Scientists have discovered a gigantic hole that has reappeared in the Antarctic ice. It is about the size of the Netherlands and is located around the Weddell Sea.

In the 1970s climatologists found a similar hole at almost the same spot. At that time they didn’t have the observation equipment that they have now, so they couldn’t study the hole closely enough. After a few years it disappeared . Last year, the hole came up again.

Researchers cannot explain how the hole emerged. One theory is that warmer salt water from deep under the Antarctic ice sheet may have come up and mixed with cold water near the surface, thus , melting the ice sheet above. Normally a thick layer of ice covers Antarctica at the end of the southern winter. Scientists also claim that it may be connected to climate change and global warming.

Such a hole in the ice is called a polynya. Although not totally uncommon, it is strange that the hole in the Antarctic ice has appeared very far from its edge . Usually such holes are found in coastal regions.

Climatologists are not sure whether the hole will have an impact on the water temperature in the world’s oceans. If warmer water continues to surface to the top of the hole it may stay there for a longer period of time because it would then be difficult for ice layers to form.

Severe weather conditions during the Antarctic winter make it difficult to find holes in the ice . This is the second time in two years that such a hole has emerged , although last year’s was not that big.

Antarctic Ice Shelf

Words

although = while

claim = to say that something is true even if you cannot prove it

climatologist = person who studies the weather and how it changes the climate on earth

coastal = where land meets the sea

disappear = go away

discover = to find something that has not been there before

edge = the part of an object that is furthest from the centre

emerge = come out from somewhere

equipment = the tools or machines you need to do something

gigantic = huge; very big

global warming = the increase in the temperature of the atmosphere

ice sheet = area of thick ice that covers the North and South Poles

impact = influence, change

layer = material or substance between two other things

reappear = to come again, after it has gone away for some time

researcher = a person who studies a subject in order to find out more about it